Following its debut at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, Vertical Entertainment has debuted the first trailer for the upcoming thrillerBerlin Syndrome, which is slated for theatrical release on May 26. This new thriller starsTeresa Palmer(Warm Bodies,Lights Out&Max Riemelt(Sense8), is directed byCate Shortland(Lore), written byShaun Grant(The Snowtown Murders), and based on the novel byMelanie Joosten. This new thriller could very well be one of the breakout indie hits this summer, if it finds the right audience.
While holidaying in Berlin, Australian photographer, Clare (Teresa Palmer), meets Andi (Max Riemelt), a charismatic local man and there is an instant attraction between them. A night of passion ensues. But what initially appears to be the start of a romance, takes an unexpected andsinister turnwhen Clare wakes the following morning to discover Andi has left for work and locked her in his apartment. An easy mistake to make, of course, except Andi has no intention of letting her go again. Ever.
The supporting cast includesLucie Aron,Matthias Habich,Cem Tuncay,Maia Absberg,Emma Bading,Kristina KostivandThuso Lekwape. The film was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize in the World Cinema Dramatic competition, withVertical Entertainmentpicking up the theatrical rights a week before its Sundance world premiere, in a deal which also included Netflix picking up thestreaming rights. Now that a theatrical release date has been set, it’s worth noting that this indie thriller will have two huge blockbusters to contend with in the Memorial Day holiday weekend frame.
While thisintense thrillerwill almost certainly get just a limited theatrical release, it will square off against two potential blockbusters, Paramount’sBaywatchtheatrical reboot and Disney’s long-awaited swashbuckling sequelPirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales. Going up against these two massive tentpole movies is certainly a daunting task, butTeresa Palmerhas already proved that low-budget thrillers can succeed at the box office, after her hit movieLights Outearned $148.8 million worldwide last summer, from just a $4.9 million budget. Still, that movie was given a wide release by Warner Bros., so it remains to be seen if a film like this can find an audience in a limited release.
If the new trailer wasn’t enough, we also have the first photos fromBerlin Syndrome, which you may check out below the trailer. Production took place in bothTeresa Palmerand directorCate Shortland’s home country of Australia, at Docklands Studio in Melbourne, with filming also taking place in Berlin, Germany as well. Take a look at thefirst trailerand photos forBerlin Syndrome, as we get closer and closer to this new thriller’s release.
